John 20:19, "Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.”
I want to focus your attention on that last phrase that Jesus said to his disciples, "Peace be unto you."
Those are the first words that Jesus Christ spoke to His disciples after His resurrection. What an amazing thing to read that Christ said “peace be unto you.” These were encouraging words for week believers. I say they were encouraging words for weak believers because just a few days earlier, a band of Romans soldiers came, led by the traitor Judas, and they arrested Christ. At that point the disciples fled. We know that Peter was off at a distance trying to watch Christ. He stopped to warm himself by a fire and a young maid girl accused him of being one of Jesus’ followers. Peter flatly denied the fact and even claimed that he didn’t even know who Jesus was. The rest of the disciples, except for John, were nowhere to be seen until we read in John 20 that they are all gathered together behind closed doors because they were afraid of the Jews.
They were indeed at this moment very week believers. Christ had told them several times what was going to happen to him. He even told them on numerous occasions that he was going to die. But thankfully, he also told them that He was going to rise again the third day. But we find the disciples here in unbelief. If they truly believed the Lord, our verse would say something totally different. Instead of saying that they were assembled for fear of the Jews, we would read that they were assembled waiting for the Lord’s resurrection.
But in this verse, we see the gentleness of our Savior. Instead of coming to his disciples with a word of rebuke, He comes to them with words of peace. Christ’s first words to His wayward disciples were, “peace be unto you.”
Often, we are no better than the disciples. How often do you forsake the Lord. Oh, maybe you don’t deny Him like Peter did, but you fail the Lord in other ways. Aren’t you thankful that the Lord does not come and rebuke you when you fail Him. Instead the Lord will come near to you and say the same thing to you that He did to His disciples: “Peace be unto you.”
If you are a true believer in Jesus Christ, He can say those words to you because Christ has made peace with God through the blood of His cross, and you have been justified by faith so that now you have peace with God. Because of what Christ has done for you in the Gospel, God’s wrath against your sin has all been dealt with. Christ took the full wrath of God that you deserved on Himself. Oh, what a wonderful salvation we have in Christ. May you know those sweet words of Christ in your own soul today: “Peace be unto you.”
